Hansi Flick reacts to Barcelona pursuit of Julian Alvarez – “I’m not worried” | OneFootball

Barcelona get their 2026-27 season underway on Sunday evening with a trip to Elche in their La Liga opener, but they do so without a recognised senior striker in their ranks. Robert Lewandowski and Ferran Torres have left for Chicago Fire and Paris Saint-Germain respectively, and as of now, no replacement(s) have been signed.

Despite reports this week that Barcelona have ended their interest in top target Julian Alvarez, the Atletico Madrid man was the big topic of Hansi Flick’s pre-match press conference on Saturday. As per Diario AS, the German head coach refused to talk specifically about the Argentine, while also admitting that he expects someone to arrive before the transfer window closes.

“I’m not worried about this. I’m not talking about players from other teams. We want to make the team stronger. This is about the team, the club. It’s not about a player or me. Deco and I know what we want. He has done a fantastic job. There are many options for the striker. The first, I’m not sure. I think it won’t be difficult.”

In the meantime, Flick will have the likes of Anthony Gordon, Fermin Lopez and Hamza Abdelkarim as options to start against Elche. He was asked about the latter’s chances following his impressive pre-season, which concluded on Wednesday with a goal against former club Al Ahly in the Joan Gamper Trophy.

Flick: The club is making a lot of changes

Flick was also asked about possible further exits. Aside from the aforementioned Lewandowski and Torres, Barcelona have also moved on the likes of Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Ronald Araujo and Ansu Fati, although the likes of Alejandro Balde, Jules Kounde and Marc Casado could also depart before the transfer window slams shut.